A Guardian SOLDIER
by LastOrder
Summary: This story basically just shows Zack's spirit looking out for Cloud. The first chapter takes place during the original FF7 game when Cloud gets washed ashore in Mideel and he has severe mako poisoning. The second chapter takes place during FF7:ACC. Please read and review.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy 7 or any of the characters. Final Fantasy 7 and all of the Final Fantasy 7 characters rightfully belongs to Square-Enix. I own nothing.**

**Hello everyone. This chapter is about when Cloud washes ashore in the village of Mideel in the original Final Fantasy 7 game. He has mako poisoning throughout this chapter and the spirit of one of his favorite people appears to look out for him and to try and talk a little bit of sense into him. Oh, and yes Cloud is the only person who sees and hears him throughout the chapter. I just thought that I'd say that because I don't want to confuse anyone. Square-Enix never really showed this part so I decided to type up a story about it. This is a friendship story too by the way. Cloud/Tifa is the only pairing in this story. I know that this is kinda dicey in some parts but this chapter covers a 7 day time-frame. I did that to try and make it not as long. Well anyways, please feel free to leave a review if you'd like to let me know what you all think about it and please enjoy the story.**

**A Guardian SOLDIER**

The young blonde haired mercenary can't help but softly moan as he manages to finally open his eyes to see a bright blue sky above him...or is it green? His eyes slightly widen when he sees some birds flying high in the sky. He can't help but think how nice it must be to have wings like a bird. They can fly whenever and wherever they want to. They're so free. The mercenary soon finds himself wondering if the birds laugh at gravity as well as the creatures who are bound to the earth when they soar through the sky. Is that why they chirp and sing so much? He can feel his fingers slightly twitch some when he suddenly hears someone talking. His thoughts are confirmed when he sees a tall figure standing over him, watching him. Cloud tries to get up, but his body refuses to listen to him and he just continues laying on his back.

The figure lets out a soft chuckle before he jokes, "You know, this isn't a very good place to sleep. I've only been gone for a few months and already you're trying to drown yourself."

After hearing what the figure just said, Cloud realizes that he's laying on a river bank that's littered with large grey rocks and he's almost submerged in a river of mako and the green mako energy liquid is up to his neck. "Hold on, buddy. I'll get you out of there," the figure tells him as he grabs the blonde from under the arms and pulls him out of the river and onto the bank the rest of the way. Cloud can't help but slightly furrow his eyebrows in confusion. Did the figure just call him 'buddy'? Who is this guy anyways? The mercenary lets out a weak grunt when he feels the back of his head being propped up against the man's chest. Is this man real? Or is he just hallucinating?

"Your luck is rough, man. You've got a severe case of mako poisoning again," the mysterious man informs him.

Wait, 'again'? What does he mean by 'again'? What's he talking about?

The slightly older man gently wraps his arms around him from behind as he tells him, "I missed you so much, Cloud. I've been watching you ever since you left the hill. I wanted to show myself to let you know that I was there, but I wasn't sure if that was a good idea or not because I noticed that you haven't really been yourself since that night."

Cloud lets out an incoherent mumble as he thinks, '...Night?'

"Yeah, the night when I couldn't get up and go with you to Midgar. We were so close. We were almost there...then those Shin-Ra troops came." The older man remains silent for several seconds before he continues in a slight shaky and firm tone as he recalls the memory, "I did my best...I've fought with all that I am..but in the end it just wasn't enough."

Now Cloud's really confused. This man seems to know him because he knows his name, but what's he talking about? And how did he know what he was thinking? The young mercenary's eyes slightly widen when he sees the mysterious figure lean over him some because now he's able to make out his features. The man has black spiky hair and a facial expression that's full of kindness and concern. He's also wearing a SOLDIER 1st Class uniform. He looks and sounds so familiar, but yet he doesn't. It's like trying to put a puzzle together without the image. Who in Gaia is he? A relative? A friend? A comrade?

He continues looking down at Cloud as he assures him, "I know that you can't remember much right now, but just give it some time. It'll all come back to you." The older man's voice suddenly sounds bright and cheerful as he asks Cloud, "Hey, do you remember this?" He softly chuckles as he playfully ruffles the blonde's hair. "I use to do that a lot just to play around with you." Cloud's head just lolls to the side after he ruffles his hair. To Cloud, it feels familiar but he just can't piece it together. "Well, it might help if I refresh your memory a bit. I'm Zack Fair. We're best friends and we use to work for Shin-Ra. In the past five years, well, let's just say that we were together a lot." The ex-SOLDIER manages a small smile as he adds, "Especially the fifth year. You pretty much became my shadow because I was always with you." Zack decides to stop himself there when he notices a small gasp escape from Cloud's lips. Maybe he remembers something..perhaps? Zack understands that his younger friend's mind is very fragile right now and the last thing that he wants to do is shatter his mind the rest of the way.

Zack gives his friend a caring smile as he says to him, "I remember the first time when you were sick like this and I would do this" Zack gently places the back of his hand on the side of Cloud's face "to see if you were doing okay." Out of a familiar reflex, Cloud lets out a weak moan as he manages to lean the side of his face into Zack's hand in response.

Zack can't help but smile even more after seeing that. It reminds him so much of the first time when Cloud got mako poisoning and he was taking care of him. Zack wraps his arms around him again before telling him, "And you would do that to tell me that you were fine." He gently pats him on the shoulder before he adds, "I think that deep down you remember in here" Zack places his hand over Cloud's chest where his heart is "but not up here." He places his hand on the blonde's forehead at the last part of his statement. "Oh, and I see that you've been taking good care of our sword," he says after he notices the Buster Sword lying on the ground with Cloud's hand loosely wrapped around the handle. He gives his best friend a big smile as he continues telling him, "But I'd rather have you take better care of yourself because you're more important than that sword."

Zack suddenly looks up with his ocean blue mako eyes when he hears footsteps racing towards them. He sees that it's a tall and very muscular man running towards them. He looks back down at his younger friend while he informs him, "Hey, someone's coming." He gently lays his friend back down on the river bank. Cloud's barely able to keep his eyes open as he lets out a soft whimper in response.

The former SOLDIER gently strokes his hair while telling him, "Everything's gonna be alright, buddy. He's not gonna hurt ya because I won't let him, okay? Just because I'm not physical anymore doesn't mean that I can't get physical." Zack knows that this man probably won't hurt his friend, but with everything that's happened in their tragic past, he doesn't really trust him either. Of course, he knows that he does have some very big advantages if things go wrong; no one can see and hear him except for Cloud because he doesn't want to show himself to anyone else right now. A second big advantage is that he can physically hurt this man if he has to in order to protect his younger friend and the stranger won't be able to hurt him.

Once the man gets to Cloud, he immediately stops to keep a good distance from him after noticing the Buster Sword in his hand. He wants to help the young man, but he also doesn't want to get cut in half with that really big sword either because he doesn't know how the blonde will react if he gets too close. The man's eyes widen in disbelief as he says, "Oh, man." To him, Cloud looks like a fallen hero who was locked in combat against a fierce enemy at the time of his devastating fall when the tides were turned against him. He looks down at the blonde with a concerned look on his face and asks, "Hey? Are you alright?" When Cloud doesn't make a sound or move, he cautiously takes a few more steps towards him and gently nudges his leg with his boot.

Cloud's eyes suddenly widen when he sees the older stranger staring down at him. He weakly grunts as he tries to tighten his grip on the Buster Sword, but to no avail. He wishes that he can move more than anything right now because he doesn't know this man. Although he can't really remember Zack, he feels safe with him. So Zack will protect him if necessary because he said that he would...right?

Since Cloud's just lying there, the older man slowly sits down beside him and quickly grabs his right wrist and pries the Buster Sword out of his right hand. "You won't be needing that, boy." The stranger can't help but feel uncomfortable when he feels like someone's watching him. When he looks up, he sees that no one else is around. He dismisses the feeling and focuses his attention back on Cloud. "I'm not going to hurt you." While looking down at the mercenary, the man can't help but notice his weird bright blue eyes.

A slightly defiant glare finds its way on Cloud's face at the man's actions. He doesn't need anyone's help. He can take care of himself. The young mercenary moans in protest when the stranger moves behind him and suddenly grabs him from behind. The man softly grunts as he tries to stand him up but he soon realizes that Cloud's body is dead weight and he immediately goes limp. He gently lays the blonde back down on the ground and grabs his arm. Cloud's body tenses up and he moans even louder when the man gently tosses him over his shoulder, "Unnngh!"

"Relax kid," the stranger tells him as he reaches down and grabs the Buster Sword with his free hand.

Cloud immediately calms down when he feels Zack gently grab his hand in comfort. He keeps his eyes locked on his and Zack's hands until he can't keep them open anymore and everything suddenly goes dark as he loses consciousness.

* * *

A few hours later, Cloud lets out a soft moan as he starts to wake up. As he slowly opens his eyes, he manages to look around some through blurred vision to try and figure out where he's at. He sees a few beds in the room and the walls look like wood, but that's all he can make out through his groggy eyes. He feels something soft underneath him, he soon realizes that it's a bed as he wakes up a bit more. However, a sudden feeling of dread comes over him when he doesn't see the familiar looking young man from earlier. He doesn't understand why, but for some reason he feels completely safe whenever he's around. Cloud manages to gather enough strength to mutter in a weak and desperate voice, "Ungh, ZZZ..ZZaaack."

"It's alright. I'm right here," Zack tells him in a kind tone as he immediately gets up from a nearby chair and gently holds his hand. He smiles down at his friend as he tells him, "Everything's okay. I'm not going anywhere, buddy." When the former SOLDIER notices Cloud looking around, he informs his younger friend, "You're at the clinic and the Buster Sword is leaning up against the wall in the next room."

An older woman who looks like she's in her fifties in a white nurse uniform suddenly walks in from the next room. She quickly walks towards Cloud and looks down at him as she asks in a soft tone, "Zack? Is that your name?" Cloud remains quiet in response as he gazes up at her through half opened eyes. She decides to repeat, "Is your name Zack?" When Cloud remains quiet, she just gives him a kind smile as she says, "Alright, that's okay. You can tell me your name when you feel more comfortable." Of course, the woman knows that this young man may never tell her because she knows that he has severe mako poisoning. She's seen mako poisoning before, but never this bad though.  
She gives him another kind smile as she introduces herself, "I'm Mary. I'm a nurse here in the 'Clinic of Mideel' and I'll be watching over you until you get better." She gently places her hand on the side of Cloud's face. However, Cloud instantly turns his head away from her and into Zack's direction as he begins to softly whimper. Mary quickly pulls her hand away and looks down at him as if she's emotionally hurt by Cloud's actions. "I'm sorry. I didn't..." She looks down as she grabs a glass of water from a nearby table. "Are you thirsty? I did a quick checkup on you while you were sleeping and you're a little dehydrated."

After hearing Mary's statement, Cloud finds himself gazing up at Zack as if he's not sure of what to do. Zack smiles down at him and gently squeezes his hand before telling him, "It's okay. I was watching her and everyone else who was in here earlier like a hawk. I promise that it's just water. She's not gonna hurt ya." With that being said, Cloud manages to part his lips and allows for the nurse to give him some water.

* * *

Seven days go by and during that time, Cloud's condition remains the same but Zack and Mary remain by his side to look after him. All three of them are in the clinic. Zack and Mary are sitting in a chair beside Cloud and Cloud's lying on the bed listening to Mary read him a story book. "The end," Mary reads out loud when she finishes reading the book and closes it up. She smiles at the blonde as she says, "My son loved that story so much when he was a little boy." She looks down at the book in her lap and holds onto it a little tighter. "I remember when he was little and he'd climb up on my lap when I was at home in my rocking chair and he'd always say, 'Mommy, please read this.'" Her voice sounds distant as she adds, "I always read it to him." She looks up at Cloud with a warm smile and says, "You know, you actually look a lot like him. If he were still around today, I think that you boys would've been good friends."

Mary swallows a lump in her throat before she continues in a shaky voice, "His name's Andrew and he was seventeen." She struggles to hold back her tears while continuing, "It happened ten years ago. I was over here caring for some patients and Andrew was home by himself. Some intruders broke into our house and they..." Tears begin rolling down her cheeks as she continues with what happened, "The evidence showed that he was trying to fend them off." She wipes her tears away as she adds a chilling detail, "I heard him screaming. As soon as I heard that I ran home as fast as I could...but when I got there, the intruders were gone...and so was he."

Zack and Cloud feel terrible after hearing her say what happened to her son. When Mary puts one of her hands on the side of the bed, Cloud manages to slightly move his hand some and gently places his hand on top of her's in an attempt to help comfort the old woman. He looks over at her with eyes full of sympathy and he wants to be able to say something to her like, 'I'm so sorry that happened,' but all that comes out is an incoherent mumble instead. She manages a sad yet hopeful smile as she looks up at the mercenary and tells him, "You're such a sweet young man. It's so sad when bad things happen to good people in this world." She soon climbs to her feet and tightly grips the story book close to her chest as she says, "I really hope that you get better soon, Sonny." For the past several days, Mary never has learned Cloud's name, so she soon found herself calling him 'Sonny' because he resembles her son, Andrew.

"My son's murderers were brought to justice. They were caught just a few hours after it happened. Before their executions, they told me that they were 'sorry'. Even to this day, I still don't believe them. Andrew has always been such a good and caring boy. They didn't have to kill him..." More tears begin to run down her face before she adds, "I mean, he was beaten and stabbed multiple times. How can they be 'sorry'? How is that an accident?"

She looks down at Cloud and releases a sigh before she tells him, "I'm so very sorry. I shouldn't have told you about that...It's never good for any of my patients to hear something like that." Mary didn't mean to get on that subject. Over the past several days that she's been caring for Cloud, she started talking to him about just anything that came to her mind because she lives by herself. She immediately found herself spending most of her time at the clinic with Cloud simply because she wanted to have someone to talk to and Cloud's a very good listener.

Mary decides to try and change the subject and brighten the mood as she says, "Well, thank you for listening." She gently brushes Cloud's bangs away from his eyes with her hand and she can't help but notice his bright blue mako eyes. "Your eyes are so pretty." She smiles at him as she adds, "I've never seen eyes that's so bright and blue before. It looks like they're glowing."

"Mary?" The older nurse suddenly looks up after hearing her name being called to see a much younger nurse in the same white nurse uniform with short black hair standing in the doorway. The younger nurse smiles before suggesting in a soft tone, "You've been here for a long time. You should take a break and get you something to eat."

"Okay," Mary answers. She looks down at Cloud and tells him, "My friend, Allesha, will look after you for a little while." She pats him on the shoulder and says, "I'll be back in a little bit, Sonny."

After Mary leaves, Allesha grabs a nearby wheelchair and walks up to the mercenary before she says with a warm smile, "It's time to go outside for some fresh air."

Not long after she gets Cloud in the wheelchair, a man suddenly walks in. "Hey Allesha?"

With Cloud sitting in the wheelchair now, his chin is resting on his chest so he can't see who the man is. His voice sounds familiar, but... Cloud suddenly feels a gentle hand on his shoulder and he hears Zack inform him, "It's that guy from the river bank who brought you here."

The young nurse pushes Cloud beside the doorway before she answers, "Yeah, what is it Edward?" She walks up to him.

The man who found Cloud, Edward, notices the young blonde sitting in the wheelchair and asks, "How is he?"

Allesha turns to Cloud, then turns back to Edward and replies in a hushed tone, "Well, he's awake more. He doesn't sleep as constant like he did when he first got here, but other than that, pretty much the same."

Edward walks up to Cloud and lightly pats him on the hand. "Hey, how are you feeling, kid?"

Cloud manages to softly groan in response, "Mmnngh."

Edward looks down at the wooden floor as he rubs the back of his neck. He soon looks back up at the young nurse and replies, "I'm sorry. I know that I should've been over here more to visit him but I've been so busy with work and the kids and..."

Allesha interrupts him as she slightly raises a hand and tells him, "That's okay. You don't need to explain yourself. I understand how busy you are." Edward just smiles at her in response. Allesha returns the smile as she asks, "So, how's the kids and the Mrs. doing?"

"Oh, they're doing pretty good. I think that I might be getting a bit of a cold though. Do you have any medicine for that?"

Allesha leads him into the other room as she answers, "Um, yes I believe that we do. I'll get you some."

While Edward and Allesha talk in the other room, Zack decides to finally confront his younger best friend about his actions that plunged him into this predicament. The spirit of the former SOLDIER was hoping that Cloud would recover before a coming calamity happens, but he knows that it's vital to speak to his friend about what happened, what's going on now, and what's to come. Zack lets out a sigh as he tries to figure out a way to tell Cloud. After he thinks of what to say to him, he walks in front of the blonde and says, "Cloud, I really need to tell you something."

With Cloud's current condition, he remains seated in the wheelchair with his chin resting on his chest. However, since he's unable to say any actual words, he manages to slowly think, 'Tell me...what?'

Luckily for Zack, he can hear his friend's thoughts because he's no longer bound to a physical body anymore. Spirits can do so much more than physical humans and Zack knows this now. He takes a deep breath before he finally asks, "Do you remember what you did before you got here?"

Cloud slightly narrows his eyes as he searches through his mind for the memory. After several seconds, a memory flashes before his eyes. He remembers Sephiroth saying that Hojo created him in a lab. He also remembers being in a large cavern. He remembers feeling as if he no longer knew who or what he was and what was left of his mind shattered...And then he gave Sephiroth the Black Materia so that he could summon Meteor and destroy the planet.

After he remembers the memory, he actually feels so much guilt and regret now for some reason. He's not supposed to feel anything is he? He's not human, he's a Sephiroth clone that was created in a lab..That's what Sephiroth and Hojo said. Cloud's head jerks up some before going limp again as he thinks, 'Nno..Oh no...What have..I...done?'

Zack gently squeezes his shoulder as he tells him in a soothing voice, "It's not your fault Cloud."

Cloud suddenly furrows his eyes as he replies with his thoughts, 'Don't..call me...that. No, I'm...not Cloud.'

Zack gently squeezes his shoulder a little bit more as he orders in a firm tone, "Yes you are. Don't listen to what Hojo and Sephiroth said. Don't you listen to anything that they say because they're lying to you. They're trying to mislead you because they know that you're the only one who can stop Sephiroth." Of course Zack knows that Vincent could probably stop the madman as well if something happened to Cloud. However, Cloud is destined to carry out the deed.

Cloud weakly shakes his head. 'No..I'm a...clone.'

Zack kneels down some and grabs the arm rests on Cloud's wheelchair and replies in a serious tone, "That's not true."

A saddened look finds its way on Cloud's face as he adds with another thought, 'The fall...I should've...' he takes a deep breath before he finishes his thoughts, 'died.'

Once Zack heard Cloud's voice echo in his mind, he firmly grips the suspenders of the blonde's SOLDIER uniform in frustration and orders, "Don't you ever think that! You hear me?" Other than a soft grunt, Cloud doesn't reply. He just continues looking down at the floor. "You're destined to help people and to protect this planet. Not help destroy it," Zack adds as he gently places his hands on Cloud's face and tilts his head up some so that he's looking at him. Cloud looks up at him like a child being scolded by his father and Zack instantly wraps his arms around him and gives him a big hug.

Cloud relaxes as Zack continues to hug him as he asks his older friend with a thought, 'How..can I...?'

Zack keeps his arms wrapped around Cloud as he answers, "It's not too late. You'll get better soon, I know you will, man." Zack releases the blonde before he continues in a soft voice, "I know you, Cloud. I know that you have a good heart and you won't let Sephiroth win." Zack's eyes slightly widen some as he suddenly looks up before looking down to the floor. He soon looks around the room, almost like he's looking for something. He soon looks at Cloud and informs him, "Tifa's here. She's looking for you." With that being said, Zack quickly climbs to his feet just before Allesha walks in.

She smiles at Cloud as she says, "Okay. Sorry that it took me a while. Edward had to leave because he has to work, but he said that he'll try to get back over here tonight to visit."

Zack suddenly looks towards the next room when he hears the door open. He stands beside Cloud and gently places his hand on his left shoulder when he hears people in the next room talking. A young woman with long black hair quickly runs in the room and over to Cloud. Zack instantly recognizes this young woman as Tifa.

Tifa eagerly runs in to see her childhood friend. "Cloud...!" Allesha moves out of the way so that Tifa can visit with him. She feels very confused to see Cloud sitting in a wheelchair, but perhaps he's just resting...? "Oh...Cloud! I'm so glad you're safe?" The last part of her statement sounded a lot more like a question because Cloud doesn't get up or look up at her or anything. He just continues to sit in the wheelchair with his chin resting on his chest and he also remains completely silent.

Once he hears Tifa's familiar voice, Cloud manages to lift his head up to look up at her. He tries to ask her how she found him, but all that comes out is an incoherent mumble, "Uh...aaa...?"

Now Tifa knows for sure that something is definitely wrong with him. A worried expression finds its way on Tifa's face as she walks up to him and asks in a concerned tone, "Wh...what's wrong...Cloud...?"

Cloud continues to gaze up at her and he tries so hard to answer her, but all that comes out is another incoherent mumble, "A... Gurk...?"

"Cloud! What happened to you?" she cries out.

Zack can't help but look down at the floor after he hears Tifa cry out. He remembers when Cloud got severe mako poisoning the first time and he remembers the constant feeling of worry and concern that plagued him. He knows that Cloud hates having Tifa and everyone else see him like this right now. He soon finds himself sitting down on the little wooden stool beside him as he listens to the elderly man who's the doctor explain what's wrong with the blonde to Tifa as well as the rest of the AVALANCHE group in the clinic.

Tifa falls to her knees in front of Cloud as she hears Barret, Cid, Vincent, Yuffie, Nanaki, and Cait Sith each softly say something but she's focused on Cloud so much that she doesn't pay any attention to what they say. Tifa remains on her knees as she listens to everyone in the room leaving to give her and Cloud some time alone. Tifa's unable to hold back her tears anymore and buries her face into Cloud's lap as she begins to weep. She shakes her head before she asks the blonde, "Why...? What do you want me to do?" She looks up at him with tears rolling down her cheeks as she begins to beg, "Please, Cloud...Talk to me...Tell me you see me, that you can hear me...Tell me, please..." To Tifa's disappointment, Cloud doesn't respond at all. Instead, he just lets out a soft grunt as he manages to lift his head up some to look around. She buries her face into Cloud's lap again and tells him in a sad and shaky voice, "I came this far believing in the memories we have together..." Her expression saddens even more when she sees Cloud's head fall back down to his chest as he suddenly becomes limp again. "This isn't happening...! This is too cruel...!"

Cloud manages to look back up at Tifa again. He feels terrible when he notices that she's crying. Now more than anything, he wants to tell her that he's fine.

Tifa keeps her face buried in Cloud's lap and continues weeping as she manages to choke out, "Oh, Cloud...! I..." After several minutes, Tifa wipes her tears away and manages a little smile as she looks up at Cloud. Her voice sounds very caring and warm as she begins to tell him, "Cloud? I..I don't know if you can hear me or not, but I..." she almost immediately starts to blush as she continues, "I love you." Cloud lets out a soft moan and he immediately leans his face into her hand when he feels Tifa gently stroke the side of his face with the back of her hand. She can't help but smile after seeing Cloud's actions. She climbs to her feet and kneels down some before she gently places her hands on both sides of the mercenary's face and lifts his head up some. Another soft moan escapes from the blonde and his eyes slowly close when he feels her lips on his. Her gentle kiss ends when she tells him, "I'm going to stay here with you until you get better, okay Cloud?"

The young mercenary gazes up at her with his beautiful bright blue eyes and a red face in response. His face reddens even more when he thinks with a shy smile, 'Us...kissing...'

Zack, who chose not to leave when everyone else did, gives the couple a big smile as he stuffs his hands in his front pockets. He really wasn't expecting for Tifa to kiss Cloud.

Tifa blushes as she smiles at Cloud before she stands up straight. "I'm going to tell everyone that I'm staying with you. I'll be back in a minute," she says to him in a soft tone before she walks out of the clinic.

Once Tifa is gone, Zack marches towards his younger friend and playfully ruffles his hair as he lets out a soft chuckle. "Way to go, lover boy," he playfully jokes with a big smile on his face. Zack looks towards the other room when he hears Tifa and the rest of the group walk in.

Tifa stands next to Cloud with her back turned to the group as she informs them in a firm tone, "I don't care about anything else, only Cloud..." She turns around to face them before she adds, "I...want to be by his side..." After listening to the group give her their support, Tifa looks down at the floor as she replies, "I'm sorry everyone...At a time like this..." She feels terrible for having them go on ahead without her, but she knows that Cloud really needs her now. The group encourages and supports Tifa's decision and they soon leave to return to the airship so that they can look for Sephiroth.

Tifa gently holds Cloud's hands and tells him in a soft voice, "I'll help look out for you, Cloud." The mercenary looks up at her and weakly squeezes her hand in response.

"Oh, hello." Tifa quickly lets go of Cloud's hands and turns around after hearing someone speak. She sees that it's an older woman in a nurse uniform who's standing in the doorway. She walks up to Tifa and shakes her hand as she introduces herself with a kind smile, "I'm Mary."

Tifa returns the smile and replies, "Hi. I'm Tifa."

Mary saw Tifa holding the blonde's hands just before she said something. So she decides to ask, "If you don't mind me asking, are you his wife?"

Tifa slightly jumps up some when she hears the nurse's question. Her eyes slightly widen just before she answers, "No, no we're not. We're just childhood friends, that's all."

"Oh, okay. That's nice. Well, it's good that you came so that he has someone here that he knows. I think that will really help him get better faster and make him feel a lot more comfortable," Mary tells her with a warm smile. She looks over at Cloud with a small smile and looks back up at Tifa. "When he woke up not long after he got here, he said 'Zack'. Is that his name?"

Tifa's eyes widen in surprise when she hears what Mary said. She looks down at the floor and thinks, 'Zack? Isn't that the SOLDIER who came to Nibelhiem? Yeah..I think that was his name...' Tifa looks back up at the nurse and answers, "No. His name is Cloud."

A big smile finds its way on Mary's face after she finally discovers the young man's name. She's been taking care of him for a week now and all of that time she's been calling him 'Sonny'. She hopes that she didn't confuse the poor boy. "Cloud? Hmm, that's a nice name." She lets out a soft laugh before she jokes with the young woman, "You know, I had a lot of serious thoughts about adopting him."

Tifa smiles at her and asks, "Did he say anything else?"

Mary shakes her head. "No. 'Zack' was the only word that he said and he only said it once and that was it."

As the two women talk to each other, Zack suddenly looks back up towards the ceiling for a few seconds. He looks back down at Cloud and tells him, "Something big is going to happen soon." He gently squeezes Cloud's shoulder as he adds, "It's time for us to go our separate ways...for now."

Cloud manages to lift his head up and look up at him as he thinks, '..Why?'

Zack squeezes his shoulder a little more while he answers, "Tifa will help you get better soon. Meteor is coming." Once Zack notices the distraught look on Cloud's face when he mentioned Meteor, he adds, "But me and Aerith will take care of that. Cloud, after you get better, you need to stop Sephiroth before Meteor comes."

Cloud looks up at him with eyes full of worry and concern as he asks him with his thoughts, 'But..what if..I...can't?'

Zack gives him a smile full of confidence as he answers, "I know you can do it, Cloud. Because you've done it before." Cloud slightly tilts his head in confusion as he continues to gaze up at Zack. Cloud doesn't realize it, but Zack was referring to the time when Cloud succeeded in stopping Sephiroth at the mako reactor back in Nibelhiem five years ago.

Cloud's head suddenly goes limp and he looks down again as he thinks, 'What if..I need...your..help? How will..I...?'

Zack gently places his warm hands on the sides of Cloud's face so that he's looking up at him. "Listen. Whenever you're in trouble...If you ever need my help, then just think of me and I'll be there in a cinch, buddy." Cloud smiles at Zack's comforting words and he smiles even more when Zack playfully ruffles his hair. "I'll still be keeping an eye on you, Cloud," Zack says as he gives him a hug. He continues hugging Cloud as he jokes with a soft chuckle, "I'm not that easy to get rid of." A big smile finds its way on Zack's face when he feels Cloud gently nuzzle the side of his face into his chest as he continues hugging him. "I love you too, buddy." He really doesn't want to leave his friend because then he'll feel like he's abandoning him. His smile fades away some as he hugs him a little tighter when he remembers when they were on the run together and he made so many promises to him that he would never leave him. Now he feels like he's breaking all of those promises. However Zack does feel better knowing that Cloud has Tifa to look out for him.

After what felt like several minutes of hugging his younger friend, Zack finally lets him go. "I gotta go, Cloud. Tifa will take care of ya though," he says with a comforting smile. Cloud begins to softly whine when he hears Zack say that he's leaving. "Hey, everything's alright," he tells him as he gently squeezes his hand.

"Cloud, are you okay?" Tifa asks after she hears Cloud's soft whines. She soon finds herself feeling confused when she notices that Cloud's looking straight ahead, but he's not looking at Tifa or Mary. Tifa follows Cloud's gaze, but she doesn't see what or who he's looking at. She places a gentle hand on his shoulder and asks in a kind voice, "Hey, Cloud? What are you looking at?"

Tifa quickly looks around the room when she hears a gentle and caring voice faintly say to her, "Tifa, you have got to look out for him. We..well, we've been through a lot together." The voice sounds familiar, but she doesn't see anyone in the room talking to her. A quiet gasp escapes from her lips when she feels a gentle breeze blow past her. At first, she thought that a window was open. However, when she looks over at the windows, they're all closed.

Cloud continues gazing towards Zack, who's now standing beside the doorway. Cloud's expression saddens as he thinks, 'Zack, please...don't go.'

Zack forces himself to smile at him as he replies, "We'll see each other again, Cloud. I promise." He continues smiling at him as he turns around and begins to walk out the doorway. As he walks out, Zack becomes transparent as he begins to fade away before he suddenly vanishes.

**Okay and this chapter is done. For some reason, I really didn't think that this chapter was going to turn out to be this long. It actually turned out to be a lot longer than what I expected. Well, personally I think that it turned out good. It is dicey in some parts because I think that it would've been way too long if I covered everything. Oh, and with Mary, I know that she's not in the game but I put her in here and I wanted for her to have a very sad and tragic past because I wanted her to use that to see Cloud a lot like a son. You know, I thought that it would've been more interesting so that she would have a connection with Cloud. Oh, and I've never played the original FF7 game. So if I messed up with something in this story than please let me know. I would really appreciate that. But anyways, what do you all think? Please feel free to leave me a review if you want to. I don't mind if it's positive, negative, or a writing tip. All reviews are welcome. Thank you all so much for taking the time to read this and/or reviewing. I always really appreciate it.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy 7 or any of the Final Fantasy 7 characters. Final Fantasy 7 and all of the Final Fantasy 7 characters rightfully belongs to Square-Enix. I own nothing.**

**Alright, Chapter 2. I would like to thank Wolfawaken for the very good and helpful tip. Wolfawaken was very kind to give me some helpful advice as well as some encouragement to type up a second chapter for this story. Thank you so much Wolfawaken, your help is greatly appreciated. This chapter takes place close to the end of Final Fantasy 7:Advent Children Complete when our favorite blonde spiky haired hero Cloud is fighting against Sephiroth. I know that this event happens some time after the original FF7 game, but I think that it would be a good way to tie it all together. Anyways, please feel free to leave me a review to let me know what you all think about it. Please enjoy.**

**A Guardian SOLDIER**

**Chapter 2**

The sounds of steel hitting against steel gets louder as a final battle between good and evil continues. Cloud cries out when he is suddenly knocked back and crashes into a nearby concrete wall on the roof of the ruins of the Shin-Ra building.

A cold smirk finds its way on Sephiroth's face as he gets in his fighting stance and advances. However, he stops running towards his opponent when he sees a glowing mist of dark blue energy emanating off of Cloud as the blonde begins to use his limit break.

Once his limit break is active, he immediately dashes up to Sephiroth and the two sworn enemies continue fighting with a flurry of several sword strikes. However, Sephiroth seems to easily block all of Cloud's attacks. Cloud lets out a loud grunt as he leaps into the air in an attempt to deliver a final blow. He suddenly lets out a sharp cry of pain when Sephiroth quickly holds up his sword and impales the blonde right in the chest and holds him up in the air and the blue misty energy from Cloud's limit break immediately fades away.

A cold smile finds its way on the former general's face as he looks up at Cloud because this is a very familiar scene. The madman enjoys the scene even more when Cloud kicks and grunts in agony. "Is this the pain you felt before, Cloud?"

The former mercenary clenches his teeth and glares at his sworn enemy in response.

In a calm and cold tone, Sephiroth continues, "Let me remind you. This time you won't forget."

A small gasp escapes from Cloud's lips and his eyes widen as Sephiroth suddenly sprouts a large black feathered wing from his right shoulder and flings him up high into the air. The former general flies directly up after him to finish him. Cloud manages to block Sephiroth's first two sword strikes, however, he manages to knock the blonde's sword out of the way. Cloud clenches his teeth and grunts in pain when Sephiroth cuts, stabs, and impales him several times throughout his body. He manages to grab his enemies blade when it cuts the left side of his face after impaling his foot. Cloud cries out when the madman roughly throws him back down, sending him plummeting towards the planet. The hero crashes on the ruins of the roof of the abandoned Shin-Ra building. Cloud weakly grunts as he manages to climb to his knees and he watches as several drops of his blood drips and falls to the ground while he struggles to pick up his sword.

Sephiroth glares down at Cloud with a satisfied grin. The time has finally come for him to end the great Cloud Strife...permanently. "Tell me what you cherish most. Give me the pleasure of taking it away." Sephiroth then begins to swoop down at the former infantryman.

Cloud looks up at his sworn enemy just as several memories flash before his eyes. Memories that he will forever cherish of Aerith, Tifa, Marlene, Denzel, and Zack...He finds himself wishing that his best friend were here to help him. Out of the two of them, it seems that Zack has always been the stronger one.

* * *

Meanwhile, during this time in the Lifestream, a young man with black spiky hair suddenly jumps up. "Cloud's in danger! I have to go!"

"Go on, Zack. Your puppy needs your help."

Zack turns his head to see Angeal standing next to him. The ex-SOLDIER nods before he answers, "Yeah, I'm on it." After he takes a few steps forward, he turns his head towards his former mentor and manages a smile as he tells him, "Don't miss me too much."

Angeal gives Zack a stoic look in response as he sarcastically answers, "Yeah. How could I manage for a full thirty seconds without you?"

Zack softly chuckles. "Good question." Zack eagerly begins to run before he suddenly vanishes out of the Lifestream to desperately aid his younger best friend.

After watching his former apprentice and friend leave, Angeal can't help but softly chuckle before he says, "Forever the restless puppy."

* * *

The quick flashes of Cloud's memories come to an end as a bright white light suddenly surrounds him. He can't help but feel surprised when he doesn't see Sephiroth anymore, as if time itself has come to a complete stop.

"So what if it looks hopeless. If it were me, I still wouldn't give up." Cloud's eyes suddenly widen in disbelief as he hears that voice. He knows that voice... A soft gasp escapes from his lips before he hears his dearly departed best friend add, "Embrace your dreams and whatever happens protect your honor as SOLDIER." Zack lets out a barely audible chuckle before he continues, "Okay, so you never made SOLDIER" he lightly taps his thumb against his chest "but it's what's in here that counts."

Cloud takes a deep breath before he manages to softly say, "Zack?"

Zack remains standing tall and proud behind Cloud to watch his back just like he always has. The spirit of the older man rests the Buster Sword up against his right shoulder before he asks, "Well, you need a hand with him?"

Help sounds so good...No, he can do this on his own because Zack believes that he can. Cloud looks down and hesitantly shakes his head. He softly grunts in pain from his wounds as he finally manages to grip his sword and climb to his feet.

After Cloud gets back up, Zack turns his head and asks his younger best friend, "You already beat him once didn't you? This should be a cinch."

Cloud keeps his eyes locked in front of him because he knows that when Zack leaves, Sephiroth will be where he was at just before Zack came. "Yeah..."

Zack turns his head and looks in front of him again as he decides to remind his best friend, "Cloud..You know what I told you?"

Cloud knows what he's referring to. "That's right." He soon finds himself repeating his last words to his older best friend from that tragic night on the hill, "I am your living legacy."

A big smile instantly appears on Zack's face as he looks down and closes his eyes before he suddenly vanishes to return to the Lifestream. He knows that this night, victory belongs to a fellow hero.

Once Zack and the bright white light disappears, Cloud doesn't waste any time and leaps into the air. He blocks Sephiroth's attack and knocks him back. Sephiroth is quick to dodge Cloud's attack and the blonde goes after him. Cloud glares up at him as he decides to answer his question from a few minutes ago, "I pity you." His voice gets louder as he continues, "You just don't get it at all! There's not a thing that I don't cherish!"  
Cloud continues glaring at Sephiroth as he twirls his sword above his head to prepare for his final attack. Cloud glares at the villian and Sephiroth looks at him with a smirk as they lock swords with each other. However, Sephiroth's eyes widen in surprise when several smaller swords unlatch from Cloud's main sword and he begins to glow blue as he activates his limit break again. The former mercenary quickly rises into the air and grabs a sword. The next thing that Sephiroth knew, Cloud becomes a blue blur and he grunts in pain when he feels several sword strikes slicing through his skin as the blonde uses incredible speed while performing his finishing move 'Omni-Slash'.

A blue energy shock wave goes out as Cloud delivers the final blow. He lands on his feet just before he easily catches his sword while the blades of his fusion swords land on the rooftop. Cloud glares up at Sephiroth and orders, "Stay where you belong..in my memories."

Sephiroth looks down at him and replies, "I will..never be a memory." With that being said, Sephiroth closes his eyes as he wraps his wing around himself and vanishes, leaving Kadaj in his place. Kadaj lets out a pained grunt as he suddenly falls to the ground.

Once he sees Kadaj, Cloud quickly tightens his grip on his sword and gets in his fighting stance in case the remnant tries to attack him again.

Kadaj tightens his grip on his sword and weakly charges at Cloud but only to fall over when he gets to him.

Cloud instinctively reaches out his left arm and catches him as he falls.

Kadaj gazes up at Cloud and weakly mutters, "Brother."

Cloud just looks down at him. He knows that Kadaj was a puppet for Sephiroth. The former mercenary knows what that's like from his past. He also knows that Kadaj is dying, so he decides to continue holding onto him until he passes on.

"Kadaj?"

Kadaj's eyes widen when he suddenly hears a woman's voice call out his name as it begins to rain. He gazes up at the sky as rain drops continue falling on his face and asks, "Mother?"

He lets out a soft gasp when he hears the woman's voice continue, "Everyone's waiting if you're ready."

When he sees a young woman in a long pink dress descending towards him he asks, "Mother? Is that...?" He reaches his hand towards her and gently grabs her hand. She pulls him up with her and his body immediately dissipates into bright green specks of energy as he joins the Lifestream.

Once Kadaj's body dissipates, Cloud climbs to his feet and watches as the green specks of energy flies towards the sky and disappears. His eyes soon wonder up towards Cid's airship where the rest of the group is and he can't help but close his eyes in relief because now the world is safe from its greatest enemy once again.

His victory is short lived when a loud thundering sound is heard and a sharp pain is suddenly felt in his left shoulder close to his chest. At that moment, it seems like everything slows down as he falls to his knees. He looks down and realizes that he's been shot as blood continues to stream out of his body and onto his left arm. He immediately discovers who shot him when he hears Yazoo's voice behind him weakly say, "We'll go..together." Cloud grunts and gasps in pain and he can't hear what Loz says afterwards. He continues grunting in pain as he tightens his grip on his sword and climbs to his feet. He almost falls but he quickly regains his balance when he stands up. He can't help but feel enraged that the last two remnants have shot him from behind when he was completely unaware of their presence. With a look of anger, Cloud turns around to face Yazoo and Loz. He cries out as he dashes up to them and drags the blade of his sword across the ground which causes several sparks to fly as he does so.

Yazoo and Loz are quick to act as they both raise their arm towards Cloud. The materia inside of their arms glow brightly with several colors as they charge up their materia for their final attack.

Once Cloud leaps into the air in preparation to strike them both down to ensure the safety of the planet, Yazoo and Loz shoot their charged up materia at him. The former mercenary doesn't even get a chance to cry out in agony when he feels his entire body burning which only lasts for a split second as the three of them are engulfed in the explosion.

"Cloud!" Tifa cries out after she witnesses with horror of what just happened from the safety of the Shera. Tifa turns to the wall and places her hands over her eyes as she begins to cry tears of sorrow. For her, it feels like a part of her has just died. At that moment when Cloud was killed, the sky darkens some as it begins to rain harder than before. It seems like the planet is weeping along with her because when a hero dies the planet cries just as it did with Angeal and Zack and now it's weeping for Cloud.

* * *

Meanwhile, a bright white light surrounds Cloud in the Lifestream. He keeps his eyes closed as if he's sleeping when he suddenly feels a warm and gentle hand on his forehead. "Mother?" He asks in a calm tone.

Cloud feels so warm and peaceful on the inside when he hears a familiar woman's voice reply as she removes her hand, "Again? Why has everyone been calling me their mother lately?" He knows that voice, it belongs to Aerith.

Cloud feels even more peaceful and warmer on the inside when he hears another familiar voice but this time it's a man's voice reply to Aerith with a soft chuckle, "I guess that they must be fond of you." Cloud smiles on the inside because he knows that Zack and Aerith are with him.

Aerith looks up at Zack and tells him with a kind smile, "This one's a little too big to adopt."

Zack smiles down at Cloud and says to him, "Tough luck, friend. Sounds like you don't have a place here."

* * *

The warm and peaceful feeling suddenly fades away when Cloud feels himself drifting away from them. The drifting feeling suddenly goes away when he feels a presence, but it doesn't feel like a human presence. It feels more like the presence of an observing and protective animal. The presence also fades away and it feels like everything's wet. To him, it feels like he's laying down on water. He slowly opens his eyes to see a very familiar looking ceiling above him. 'The church,' he thinks to himself. He also sees several young children staring down at him. They continue staring at him as he climbs to his feet to find himself standing in water and surrounded by several people including his friends in Aerith's church. A blank expression remains on Cloud's face as he looks around.

A little girl smiles up at him and says, "It's like she said 'Wait here and Cloud will come back.'"

"Welcome back!" Cloud hears another little girl tell him in a cheerful tone.

Cloud manages a small smile and nods his head before he says, "I'm back."

Nanaki takes a few steps forward and looks at Cloud as he informs him, "There are still children with the stigma."

"Yeah," the former mercenary answers before he walks towards Denzel, who's being shy and hiding behind Tifa.

Tifa kneels down beside Denzel and tells him, "Let's get you fixed up."

Cloud smiles up at Denzel and holds out his hand as he tells him in a soft tone, "Come on, I'm here."

Denzel looks down at Cloud before Tifa tells him, "It's okay."

Cloud gently picks up Denzel and carefully sits him down in the water which is from Aerith's healing rain and has been fused with the Lifestream. Denzel watches as Cloud scoops up some of the water and lightly pours it onto the young boy's head. Denzel quickly rubs some of the water onto his forehead, hoping that this will really work and cure the deadly disease. He eagerly yet nervously watches his reflection in the large pool of water that him and Cloud is standing in. He watches in amazement as the geostigma that's on his forehead completely disappears. A surprised gasp escapes from him as he looks up at Cloud. The former mercenary smiles down at him and nods to tell him that his geostigma is gone forever. A big smile finds itself on Denzel's face as he lets out a cheerful laugh and he turns to face the people. The townspeople along with Barrett, Cid, and Yuffie happily cheers as several people jumps into the water to celebrate. Cloud's face slightly turns red when he sees Tifa cross her arms and smile at him, which to him looks like a flirtatious smile.

The former mercenary can't help but smile with joy as he looks around and sees how happy everyone looks. His eyes immediately wonder towards a young woman in a long pink dress who's kneeling down next to some kids. Cloud instantly knows who she is. He watches as she gets up and begins to walk towards a young man who's standing in the doorway. Cloud instantly knows who he is as well.

Aerith turns around and smiles at him. "You see. Everything's alright." She slowly walks towards the doorway.

Zack continues leaning up against the doorway with his arms crossed and thinks, 'I told you that I'd be there to help you if you ever need me.'

Cloud can hear his best friend's thoughts and he continues gazing at him as he replies with a thought, 'Thank you..for everything. I just want to make you proud, Zack.'

Zack smiles at his younger best friend and tells him with his thought, 'I am always proud of you, Cloud..And you're never alone.' Zack continues smiling at him as he gives his friend a little wave with his hand before he turns to leave with Aerith.

Once he heard Zack's words in his mind, a smile appears on Cloud's face while he watches Zack and Aerith leave and thinks, 'I know. I'm not alone..not anymore.'

* * *

The next day, Cloud finds himself walking up to a very familiar place. A place that he feels has played a huge role in shaping the reason for his very existence..Zack's grave. He can't help but smile to himself when he sees that there's now a small group of flowers and grass growing in the very spot where his best friend drew his last breath at. The Buster Sword no longer rests here. Cloud restored that legendary and great blade to its former glory yesterday not long after Zack and Aerith's departure. The sword now rests in the stone alter at the church where it's surrounded by Aerith's flowers. It now serves as the perfect representation of the ultimate sacrifice that both Zack and Aerith has made. The former mercenary slightly bows his head in respect as he thinks, 'I'm here, Zack.'

Out of curiosity, Denzel asks in a soft tone, "Is this somebody's grave?"

Cloud remains quiet for a few seconds before he answers, "No. This is where a hero began his journey." Cloud looks down at his adopted son and notices that he's slightly tilting his head some in confusion at Cloud's statement. Little does the young boy know that when Cloud said 'hero' he was referring to Zack and when he said 'began his journey' he was referring to himself.

Denzel looks up at Cloud and asks, "Hero?"

The former mercenary continues gazing at Zack's grave as he replies with a small smile, "I'll tell you the story some time, kid."

Denzel's eyes immediately light up as he looks at Cloud and asks with a big smile on his face, "Really? Is it about you?"

Cloud looks at Denzel as he replies, "Yes, but it's also about a great hero who taught me everything that I know."

The young boy's eyes widen in excitement, "Wow! You know a really cool hero like you?"

"Of course I do. Come on. When we get to the church, I'll tell you the whole story, kid," Cloud tells him as they turn to leave. He has to tell him because he owes it to Zack. He will tell him the entire story about the brave Zack Fair..The young man who has been an older brother and a father figure to him and he will always be his best friend as well as his hero.

**Okay and there's chapter 2. I would also like to thank Wolfawaken again for encouraging me to do a second chapter for this oneshot...which is now of course a twoshot. Thank you so much Wolfawaken. The very ending with Cloud and Denzel was Kikino's idea. I would like to thank Kikino for giving me the idea to put that scene in. Thank you Kikino, I really appreciate it. Oh, and please review to let me know what you all think. I never mind positive reviews, negative reviews, or writing tips. Thank you all for reading this and I hope that you all enjoyed it.**


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